The Love Letter
by pumpkingirl411
Summary: After an interesting case, Bones finally gathers the courage to tell Booth how she really feels. What'll happen? Read to find out! my first for these two please R
1. The Note

One night after a long case, Dr

One night after a long case, Dr. Temperance Brennan was sitting on her bed, thinking about Booth. This case had been a tough one personally for her. A woman of about 30 had been writing a love letter for someone she'd been in love with for a long time, when one of her ex-boyfriends stabbed her multiple times in the neck, back, and stomach. It had been particularly difficult because she herself was in a similar situation. No, she didn't have ex-boyfriends that wanted her dead. Aside from the one that broke into her apartment to steal the TV; and Michael who was an ego maniac that shouldn't have been messing around with one of his students in the first place (even if that student was smarter than him), they hadn't been that bad. No, what was similar was that she had been in love with a man for three years now, and she hadn't said anything to him.

Now, as she sat thinking about him, she realized she couldn't put it off any longer. She scrambled off of her bed and searched for some paper and a pen. Once she found some, she went back to her bed and tried to think of how to start it.

_Booth,_

No, that was too professional.

_Dear Booth,_

No, that didn't sound right. It had to be personal.

_Dearest Seeley,_

No, that was TOO personal.

_Seeley,_

Perfect. Now, what would it say? Should she tell him that she's secretly been in love with him from the beginning? That throughout her relationships with David, Michael, and even Sulley, all she could think about was him? No, that was a bit too much for the first love letter. Hmm...Ah!

_Seeley,_

_There's something I need to talk to you about. Could you meet me at the diner at around 7 tonight?_

Okay, that sounds good. But how should she end it?

_Sincerely,_

No, too business-like.

_Love,_

Uhh...NO!

_Bones_

Good. She put the note in an envelope and wrote "Special Agent Seeley Booth" on it. Once she made sure it was tucked away safely in her purse, she laid down and smiled. She fell asleep almost immediately, dreaming of what the next day would bring.


	2. His Response

For a Friday, things were unusually quiet

For a Friday, things were unusually quiet. He hadn't really done anything all morning, and to be honest, he was bored! He _always_ had things he needed to do, but for some reason, he didn't today. He was considering going home, but even _there_ he'd be bored. He knew he couldn't bother Dr. Brennan for no reason; she'd probably rip his head off for interrupting her work. He smiled sheepishly when he thought of her, and he decided to just call to see how she was. He was dialing her number when there was a knock on his door.

"Agent Booth? An envelope was dropped off for you."

"Oh, okay." He took the envelope from the man and went back to his desk. He closed his phone and looked at the writing on the envelope: "Special Agent Seeley Booth" was written in Bones' handwriting. He smiled and opened it.

_Seeley,_

_There's something I need to talk to you about. Could you meet me at the diner at around 7 tonight?_

_Bones_

He read and reread the note, including the errors. The shock was evident on his face. Why had she written (and crossed out) so much? She must've been arguing with herself over how to head it. He was utterly surprised, however, by two things. One, she called him Seeley. She never did that! Two, she had written "love". _Love?_ Why would she...No way. There's no way someone like her would love him the way he loved her. Oh, how he loved her! He smiled as he ran his fingers across the page, imagining her write it. It was almost like he was in a trance. She filled his head and tingled his senses. Suddenly, his trance was broken by the sound of his phone.

"H-Hello?"

"Hi Booth, it's me."

"Oh, hey Bones! What's up?"

"I just finished the paperwork for the Cook case." She sounded like there was something wlse she wanted to say, but she didn't continue.

He knew what it was. "You want me to come pick it up?"

"No, that's okay. I'm just gonna leave it on my desk."

Or not..."Oh." He paused for a second, then said, "I got your letter."

"O-Oh, y-you did?" Was she stuttering? Bones never stutters! "G-Good."

He grinned childishly. She was too adorable for her own good sometimes. "Yeah.." The line was silent for a few minutes, then he said, "I'll see you at 7."

"O-Okay...Bye, Booth."

"Bye." He waited until she hung up before he did. He leaned back in his chair and chuckled. It wasn't until an hour later that he realized he had no idea what he was going to wear. He left his office and went to tell his boss he was leaving.

As he was driving home, something hit him. Why did he care so much about what he wore or how he looked? It was just dinner, right? They'd done this countless times before, why did it matter now? So there was something she wanted to tell him, big deal. It's not like she's gonna ask him out, right? I mean, what would her father say? "You're dating the man who arrested me?" That would be a disaster waiting to happen!

...But what if she did? What if she told him she loved him unconditionally, just like he did? Was he ready for that? ...Of course he was! He'd wanted that since they became partners! But, like he'd told Sweets, you couldn't rush her. He knew, or hoped anyway, that she'd come to him when the time was right. But...was it now?

As soon as he reached his apartment, he walked right over to the closet. He wanted to look casual, but not too casual. After he found the perfect clothes (dark blue jeans, white T-shirt, and a brown jacket), he looked at himself in the mirror and gave himself a "pep-talk".

"You can do this. It's only a dinner, nothing you haven't done before. All she wants to do is talk. Come on, get it together." He looked down at his watch and smiled. 6:30. Quickly, he gathered his keys and headed out the door.


	3. Confessions

She sat at their usual table, stirring her water with a straw

She sat at their usual table, stirring her water with a straw. She was a nervous wreck. Ever since he had said he'd gotten her letter, her nerves had been shot. How was she supposed to tell him how she felt if every time she tried to speak, a lump rose in her throat and she couldn't breathe? ...This was going to be harder than she thought.

She looked at her watch and sighed. 6:45. He wasn't supposed to come for another 15 minutes. She sighed heavier this time and looked out the window. Oranges and reds danced across the sunset sky, sending a calming feeling over her. Suddenly, she felt someone's hand on her shoulder. Her heart began to race; she already knew who it was. She turned to see Booth standing next to her.

"Hey, Bones." He smiled warmly, which made her stomach drop to her feet.

"Hi, Booth." She smiled back at him. "You're early."

"So are you." When she got a good look at him, she almost gasped. He looked so...so amazing. She was used to seeing him in suits; that's what he always wore. But when she was able to see the casual side of him, it never failed to take her breath away.

"So, what's up?" He sat down across from her and smiled.

"Not much." She turned to look out the window again. Now that the moment was here, and there was no going back, she wasn't sure if she really wanted him to know. She'd had some time to think about it, and she'd concluded that she really didn't want to ruin their friendship. Then again...if he felt the same way, then... She sighed and went back to stirring her water.

"Bones, are you okay?"

"Yes. I've just been doing a lot of thinking since the Cook case, and..."

"I know what you mean." He shook his head. "It's a shame that that woman wasn't able to tell him that she loved him. I actually feel sorry for the man."

Bingo. Now she had him right where she wanted him. "Yeah, but don't you think it was wrong of her to wait so long to tell him? I mean, if she had told him just a day, or an hour, earlier, she might still be alive."

"I guess maybe you're right, but she didn't know that. If she did, I'm sure she wouldn't have waited."

"It still takes a lot of courage to say something. Maybe she was afraid of rejection." Now, she was on a roll. She felt her heart speed up and she looked back at him.

"Well...yeah... That's understandable." Where was she going with this?

"Here's your food." Sid came over to their table and placed a plate of fries and a slice of pie on the table. "You guys enjoy." He winked at Bones like he knew her secret and walked away.

Her cheeks turned a little pink and she ate one of the fries. "I hope you don't mind, but I ordered you some pie." She smiled. "I know how much you love pie."

"No, not at all. Thank you," he said happily. He took a bite of it and smiled. "So...is the case what you wanted to talk about?"

"N-No..." She looked down at her hands. "I had a... Well what I wanted to say was..." Here came the lump in her throat again. Her heart pounded wildly in her chest.

"Yes?"

"Well, I...I know what Megan must've been feeling."

"What do you mean?"

"She was in love for a long time, but was either too stubborn or too afraid of having her heart broken to say something to him."

"And you know what that's like?"

"Yes." There was a long silence between them after that, but it was a comfortable silence. It was like both of them knew what she was trying to say, she just needed to say it.

Booth smiled warmly and took her hands in his. He just sat there, smiling encouragingly, carefully trying to figure out what was going through her head.

"Booth, I..." She looked into his dark brown eyes and smiled. "I..."

"You...what?"

She looked down at her hands in his and took a deep breath. "I...I think...or I mean...I know..." She had to say it, she had to. If she didn't soon, it'd come out of her like word vomit. She took another deep breath. "I...I..."

"What is it, Bones? You can tell me."

"I'm in love with you, Booth."


	4. Late Night Dinners

"Wh-What did you say?"

She was speechless. _Did I really just say that? _"I...I..."

"You...You're in love with me?" Apparently, he was just as surprised as she was.

"Y-Yes..." She suddenly became aware of her hands in his and felt her cheeks heat up. "I...I've been giving this a lot of thought and...well..." She cleared her throat in an attempt to keep herself from panicking. "I love you, Booth."

He looked at her, trying to find some hint of doubt; some part of her that thought this was wrong, that was unsure. But, he found none. She was really serious about this...Of course, he should have known that. She wasn't the type of person to get herself into something without thinking long and hard about it first. She always analyzed every possible situation before making a move; something that he'd always loved about her. He smiled and squeezed her hands comfortingly. "Bones..."

"Hm?"

"I have a confession to make also."

She looked up at him. "What is that?"

"I think I'm in love with you, too."

She looked up at him in shock. "Y-You what?"

"I love you, too." He smiled and gently squeezed her hands.

She sat in silence for a few minutes, trying to figure out something to say. She really wasn't expecting him to say that, and it was an understatement to say that she was surprised. She had to be sure. "H-How do you know?"

His smile widened. "Well, that part's easy. Bones, every time I see you with a man that isn't me, I want to rip his throat out. Whenever I see you hurting, I want to take away whatever it is that's bothering you. I hadn't realized it, but somewhere along the way, between all of our fights and late-night dinners, I fell in love with you." He chuckled. "Actually, the more we fought, the farther I fell. It doesn't make sense, but it's the truth."

"You mean...like when you met David?"

"Yeah, I really didn't mind the guy, but when I saw that look he gave you..."

"What look?"

"The look that says...Well the one that...You know that one that...You know, that one."

"Um, Booth? I'm not following."

He sighed. "The look that says this..." He leaned across the table and kissed her gently on the lips.

He pulled away slowly and looked deep into her eyes. She looked back at him, a hint of longing in her eyes. It was just a simple kiss, nothing like the surprise Christmas kiss, but still...something about the way he kissed her sent an unusual feeling throughout her body. Neither of them could say anything, but they knew how the other was feeling; the same feeling that hung in the air around them.

Bones was the first to speak. "O-Oh...that look..." She cleared her throat. She knew what had to happen next, but would she have the courage to ask? She must have it somewhere in her! After all_, _she _did _just tell him she loved him...how hard could it really be?

Turned out, she didn't have to. "Bones, I think we should continue this conversation somewhere a little more..." He smiled. "...private."

"Your place or mine?"

"It's up to you."

Half an hour later, she was standing outside his apartment. She took a deep breath, then knocked on the door. "Booth, it's me."

"Just a second." He pulled open the door slowly and smiled. "Well? What do you think?"

"Booth...it's..." She walked in almost in a daze. The room was completely dark, aside from two single candles on a table. She squinted a little to see the outlines of Wong Foo's take-out boxes. She smiled and turned to him. "That's very thoughtful of you."

"Well, I figured since we never ACTUALLY ate anything, we may as well eat here. Do you mind?"

"Not at all." She walked over to the table and sat down. "So..."

"Eat first, Bones. Then we can talk." He smiled and sat across from her.

"Fair enough."

They ate in silence, both of them stealing glances at the other. After a while, she leaned back in her chair and sighed. "Booth, we're acting like children."

"Why would you say that?"

"Why can't we talk about this? I mean...it's natural, right? You're perfectly capable of talking about this with Cam, why not me?"

He was surprised by how straight-forward she was being, but then again, he really wasn't. She was never the type to beat around the bush. "Well, I guess it's because you're different, Bones." He looked up at her and smiled warmly.

"What do you mean?"

"What do I mean? Well..." He leaned back in his chair also and thought. "We...We connect differently than I did with Camille. We were partners first, but more importantly, we were friends. We may not have known it, but we got a lot closer in the time we've been partners."

"I know...The night after I was shot at; you know the day you met David?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, afterwards, I was sitting at my desk with Angela, and there was something she'd said that made me realize how much I really DO need you..."

"Really?" He leaned forward, now intrigued.

"She said that I have my own "knight in standard issue body armor"."

He laughed. "Yup, that sounds like her."

"That made me think...I spent the rest of the night trying to figure out my relationship with you. The way you acted when you met David; I really didn't understand why you'd behaved so childishly, but after thinking about it, I came to a conclusion."

"Oh you did?"

"Yes."

"And what was that?"

"I concluded that you were jealous."

He looked away for a moment, then looked back at her. "Yeah?"

"And I realized then...that I was in love with you too."

"Well, if you knew that so long ago, then why did it take so long for you to..."

"I was afraid, just like Megan. I've had my heart broken before and-"

"Yeah I know. I hated Michael for doing that to you. I was about rready to kill him."

"It isn't even about him. My past has pretty much prevented me from really getting close to anyone, but..."

"I was different?"

"Yes..."

"Oh..." They sat quietly, not knowing what else to say. What else was there to say?

She knew. "Booth, can I ask you something?"

"Anything."

"Do you...remember when Zach left and I wouldn't go out on the field with you?"

"Yeah..."

"Angela said it was because when she and Jack ran away, they left the two of us at the altar..."

"So?"

"And it...it frightened me."

"Why?"

"Because I thought about what it would be like to..."

"To be married to me?"

She didn't say a word. Instead, she kissed him so lovingly that it made him weak at the knees.


End file.
